


Why Would You Write That?

by DevStuff (HybridTrash13)



Category: Original Works
Genre: Abuse, Author's Musings, Character building, Discussion of sexual assault, Mentioned Pedophilia, Other, Psychology, Supplementary Material, Triggers, Writing Guide, suggestions accepted, world-building
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-09
Updated: 2015-09-17
Packaged: 2018-04-19 22:20:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4763150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HybridTrash13/pseuds/DevStuff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A little look into the psychology behind why some people write the stuff they do. From the exploration of rape, to the normal character backgrounds. This will be an in-depth guide and explanation. Most of this will be based around trauma, so watch the warnings. Triggers may lie ahead, you have been warned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sexual Assault

So hello everyone. Welcome to _Why Would You Write That?_ Now this is going to be a rather in-depth exploration and explanation of why people end up writing what they do. In this chapter I'm going to be explaining Sexual Assault. This includes Pedophilia, Incest and just general Sexual Harassment.

So, yeah. Right off the bat I'm going to say **Trigger Warning: Discussion of sexual assault/rape, pedophilia, incest and sexual harassment.** So anyone who is triggered by such subjects can skip over this chapter if it's upsetting. I really don't want to trigger anyone or harm anyone's sensitivities.

Rape/Sexual Assault?

So first off, I'm going to talk about the big one. The most common one that's seen out of these topics. Well aside from pedophilia. Anyway so Rape. I've already ranted about this elsewhere but that was kind of just me unloading. Anyway so first of I'll give my definition of Sexual Assault so that we're all on the same page.

> Well, while I would assume that most people are already aware of this, Sexual Assault is not just the act of attacking and raping someone via intercourse. Sexual Assault can also cover some forms of repeated Sexual Harassment. Really it's an action that leaves the victim feeling incredibly violated and unsafe within their own skin.
> 
> It can be done with both male and female victims and commit by both male and female culprits.

Now that that's over with... Why do people write about it? Well, in all honesty there's actually a variety of reasons that one might choose to breech this subject in their work.

Some people(mostly idiots), consider it as nothing more than an easy to use and apply plot device. Either to make their character seem strong, or because it's the first thing that they can think of to make their work more edgy or dark.

Then there are people who write about the subject because their emotions on the subject are rather conflicted. They don't know how they're supposed to feel about it and they're conflicted. So they write about it to figure out their conflicting emotions... Most of the people in this category would likely be teenagers.

Next are the people like me, the ones who write about it as a form of character exploration, and who write about it because they wish to educate those around them. To draw attention to the very real problem that's in the world around us. Or we have at least a single known and named character with rape in their background for a bit of realism.

Finally, there are more than a fair amount of people who write about sexual assault who're actually victims of the action, or otherwise know someone who's been assaulted. These people write about it to try and work through their own trauma and achieve some form of closure. I don't know accurate statistics for this one, but I have talked with someone who was one of these people and it's definitely something to think about.

Pedophilia?

The second biggest one in stories and other fictional media is pedophilia. Usually it's not actually something that's really showcased though. Not as much as we have moments where there's a character accused of being a pedophile, or there's an offhand mention of a pedophile being caught. Or this is part of a character's Rape as Backstory. Again, I'm going to post my version of what the definition of pedophilia is.

> Officially pedophilia is the act of having sex with a minor or otherwise with person under the legal age of Consent. Typically pedophilia is depicted as having sex with someone who's under the age of thirteen/fourteen but in reality and predominantly in my mind Pedophilia is actually having sex with anyone who's under the age of eighteen.

Again those categories of people that write about sexual assault can come under those who write about pedophilia. From the idiots who only consider it a plot device, who those who want to educate and explore, to those who're trying to come to terms with their own experiences or the experiences of their friends.

Of course, with pedophilia there might be another aspect when it comes to writing about it. In my case I kind of initially ending up writing about a vaguely pedophiliac character by accident. It was primarily a world-building thing, with my villain and trying to build their backstory. To get into their head and understand how they became the person that they are and why they hated children as much as they did...

Except that they didn't. I was weirded out by that story in the end and it's somewhere on my hard drive buried. Not exactly planned so yeah. But it did have emotions and thoughts that were provoking in my mind. Seriously though, pedophiliac tones are usually written in the context of understanding your own emotions or those of your characters. Or as I explained in the above section by a variety of people.

And then there are the odd people who write about it just to get rid of their own emotions in that context. Who're trying to understand their own sexuality... It's weird, but it's a way that some people cope as mentioned.

Incest?

Another one of those weird subjects really. We don't actually get much of this in fiction really. I mean there are some stories that certainly have tones of it, not to neglect the Creepy Uncle trope or the other incest tropes. Again my definition of the subject.

> Incest is the act of Sex between close relatives. As in within the last two generations. Aunts/Uncles/First Cousins/Siblings/Parents/Grandparents. Whether it's willing or not, the act is termed as incest.

And this is actually one of the more tricky ones. Because, I've never really seen incest just thrown in except in fandom pairings such as Uchihacest or Wincest or a number of the Harry Potter pairings. So I don't really know how to explain this. Of course there are people who write about it just because. There are also people who want to educate others, to try and portray it realistically.

Me, I find the subject incredibly interesting. From an Author's viewpoint it's an interesting way to explore your characters. Exactly how close are those siblings, is it truly platonic love? And yet at the same time, there are other aspects that make me explore it. What effect does it have on the family? How does culture influence this relationship. Willing or unwilling? Tradition... And I use it in the context of world-building mainly. While also doing a tonne of research because I'm not going to just throw it in.

As with the previous two sections, I'm sure that there are people who write about it just to try and work through their own experiences and emotions. I remember once when I was small wanting to marry one of my cousins after all... So yeah. Although who doesn't have an experience where they once declared that they would marry a relative before they grew older? So yeah, again, this is generally.

Sexual Harassment?

Who hasn't experienced at least a little bit of this in real life. Who hasn't seen female characters who have to deal with objectification and harassment from characters around them. Who hasn't seen characters that plaster on an uncomfortable smile in response to the actions of those around them? Who hasn't? Again, I'll define the subject.

> Sexual Harassment is the act of continually harassing another person with romantic advances even when they're obviously uncomfortable. It can be as simple as flirting or catcalling to things such as touching someone when they don't want to be touched or asking for sex. Giving out flowers and or other gifts, saying that they should be grateful or otherwise hinting that you want something from them. Of course it can also turn into real harassment by calling the other person cruel names and degrading them when they don't respond in the way that you clearly want. Mostly it's a form of objectification.

And seriously, in reality where haven't you seen this? What kind of story doesn't have at least one perverted character who's always been hit or yelled at or otherwise scolded for being so? What series or show or comic doesn't have that one character that has to deal with being harassed by others?

Where haven't we seen this? No seriously tell me right now, where haven't we seen this?

No where. Even kids cartoons sneak some of this stuff in and under the radar. And honestly most of this kind of stuff is written in by accident because it's so normal. Even in reality sexual harassment is normal. You see it all around us, with boys feeling entitled to having sex and getting a girlfriend and then complaining when they get "friend zoned" which in all honesty is ugh.

This stuff is written in because everyone knows it. Everyone sees it and therefore it's written in even without being meant to. Or it is meant to, but nobody learns because why would they? It's normal... And it really shouldn't be. Especially because these small things can lead to bigger things such as rape or sexual assault.

Most of the time when I write harassment I actually don't register it until I'm rereading my work and that's disgusting. But, that's reality for you I suppose.

What Else Should We Keep In Mind?

On this topic there's actually a lot to keep in mind. From the reasoning behind why you're writing what you're writing to how it will change the story. It's a given fact that including the first three will probably instantly bump the rating of your work right into mature, but at the same time you need to think of the tone of the story.

If you want to include such an act you need to make sure that it would fit into the universe. And that it's not overly superfluous. Also, you need to consider the character's reactions, what kind of audience you're aiming for everything.

But most importantly, you need to consider why you feel the need to include such an act in the first place, the character's gender. And... Do the research on the subject.

What Characters/Stories Do You Have?

I myself do actually have a number of stories and characters with backstories that include such elements. Buziba after all was abused by his older brother and molested by him. I have another character also a boy who was assaulted by someone that they thought was a friend... Both have rather different reactions. While Buziba shrinks in on himself and hides away his shame and becomes more and more timid the latter character tries to push it away and pretend that nothing happened at all.

Both of them are boys. I have another character who's defending their younger sister from molestation, but neither have actually been molested and with them is an older girl who shields them both by allowing herself to be used instead.

All of those examples take place in the same world. Otherwise, most of my characters only really experience sexual harassment and they don't have to deal with anything worse than that. Unless I dive right into their backgrounds. I have a number of miscellaneous background characters who've experienced a bit worse than just harassment. A half witch child for example who became a villain after being tortured and raped for an extended period of time by the people who were supposed to protect her. A young mage who threw his life away and turned to drugs to forget about the abuse going on at home.

All of my stories were primarily written as writing and background practice. For a self-study and if they ever got published in any form... To show the different ways that people can react. From the ones who talk about it and get support(Benjamin) to those who internalize it and use it as an excuse to take out their rage and pain on the rest of the world(Kia). Seriously, I don't approach this topic just for show or anything. I consider what kind of trauma I'm going for and how the character would react.

Also, I keep in mind what kind of audience I would want to read my stories. Usually Young Adult readers. So these themes are typical enough.

Conclusion?

In conclusion. I would say that the psychology behind it is basically this is how you're attempting to cope with the issue. Even when handled poorly it's typically written because there's a want to include it. Maybe superfluous, maybe not, maybe to cope and gain closure. But don't assume that everyone who writes about sexual assault or any of these other things is doing it just because they want to make their fic darker.

Because we're not...


	2. Abuse

So welcome to the second chapter of  _Why Would You Write That?_  and yeah, this chapter is on abuse. Which is both child abuse and spousal abuse aka Domestic Violence, along with the whole emotional, mental/psychological aspects of it. For sexual abuse apply the rules of the previous chapter.

Again I'm going to put the trigger warnings right here at the start.  **Trigger Warning: Discussion of Abuse and Domestic Violence, faint mention of drug addiction and alcoholism.**  As usual, or what's going to become usual if you're triggered by any of that stuff feel absolutely free to skip right over this chapter. So let's get down to business then.

Childhood Abuse? 

Also known as the most commonly seen form of abuse in media. This character comes from a damaged family that abuses them. This character suffered a form of abuse as a child, this character is living in an abusive home...

Again, as usual I'll sort of explain my personal definition of each thing, but after this chapter I'm also going to post a few chapters which highlight the differences between abuse and other types of punishment or conflict within the home.

> Childhood abuse is typically any kind of abuse carried out during childhood. Usually from an incredibly young age. It's not really so much of a category of abuse as much as a time when the abuse began and was carried out.

But yeah, there's not all that much I can say about childhood abuse. Mainly because it's another incredibly common background choice. I mean consider Harry Potter, Naruto(consider the villagers attitude), Matilda, and a few other things. Heinz Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb is also an example of an abusive childhood... Except you know his is kind of all for laughs considering the sheer lack of consistency.

Also really, considering how many people have aspects of this in their writing I don't entirely think that I can explain the main reasoning. Since it's so common I kind of think that this is the default for when you want to work with a character that has the Dark and Troubled past.

There are of course those who write about Childhood abuse in an attempt to give those people voices, and also as with Sexual Assault there are those who write about abuse in an attempt to work through their own issues, or to gain a better understanding of it. Also, those who are writing it because they're close to someone who suffered from such abuse.

And of course it's used as character exploration by people like me, who wish to understand more about their world and everything. Also, education. In the context of the rest of the world, some of us wish to educate everyone about the harsh truth of reality.

Psychological Abuse? 

Or the thing that I once on a blog called Mental Abuse. Yeah, I honestly don't have that much to say about this one apart from it specifically being one of those forms of abuse that kind of overlaps with another one... Namely Emotional Abuse, also a fair bit of Verbal Abuse can be wielded here

> So Psychological Abuse is done by manipulation and guilt tripping. It can involve aggressive comments and also dominant behaviour such as cutting the victim off from the outside world. A fair bit of emotional manipulation and general intimidation tactics. Threatening the other person and somewhat objectifying the target of the abuse by confusing their emotions and opinions keeping them off balance.

Seriously though this is one of those hard to define and explain kind of things. Also it's one of the ones that's actually harder to write about than the others. I mean you can kind of do physical and verbal abuse easily enough, especially when mixed together but this one is incredibly hard because it seems to mix all of them together.

As usual the reasons vary from dealing with their own experiences, to educating other and simple exploration. Again though sometimes this can be done by accident, for example when trying to figure out scenes in your story this can happen between some of the characters and lead into more problems. Part of exploration in writing I suppose.

Also, just for reference, Psychological Abuse can also come into play in a story set in a school if you're dealing with a character who bullies the main character either verbally or via the internet if such a thing exists in story.

Physical Abuse?

AKA, that one that happens a lot more than people will think about. Whether it's bullying or just in the home, again definition.

> Physical Abuse is the act of using physical harm to control and limit another person. It can vary from slapping or rough handling to such things as starvation and locking the other person in an area or space that's too small for them. Partial drowning and using harm and fear to control the other person.

Like with the other forms of abuse this one is often primarily written in as background details. Whether it's the typical dark and troubled past go to, or to actually explain things is up to the Author. Also again the reasons for writing about physical abuse and in what context will also differ from story to story.

Is in happening in a schoolyard context as a form of bullying? At the home? Is it due to issues that the writer is dealing with in reality, to spread the word and enlighten others? Or just because it seemed to fit in the context of the story. Is it just to explore the relations and reactions of the characters? Or even is it accidental in the context of what you're writing?

Really though, it's one of the more common forms of abuse in stories.

Domestic Violence?

Which typically isn't actually thought about in the context of writing. Also, this is actually treated as something of a joke in some contexts. Such as when the victim of such violence is a male, which yeah not funny. Again I'll explain my definition and then expand a bit.

> Domestic Violence is typically defined as a situation where one or both members of an intimate relationship is/are abusive towards the other. Such a relationship can be anything from a romantic partnership or simply dating to a close friendship. The forms of domestic violence can also be subtle or overt, stalking is an example of domestic violence after all.

Again, this is not really something that's thought about. I mean how many times do we see that one character that's a stalker in a story and it's treated as something of a joke, or harmless, or not something that should be worried about. Examples that I'm thinking about are Amy(from Sonic) and possibly Ginny(in Harry Potter) among the numerous characters from anime that go full Yandere. Of course that's kind of weird to think about. Still important to note since stalking is a form of this kind of domineering behaviour a need to know where the other person is at all times.

As this is kind of often hinted at in stories, or there just not expanded upon I don't really know how much I will be able to explain because again it's kind of always there in the background. With problems between the parents, or just generally in the family.

Again, the reasons can vary from enlightening others. To simply throwing it in, or of course dealing with issues in real life. It can be exploration of the concept a way to understand your feelings and of course there are the jerks who just don't seem to care.

What Else Should We Keep In Mind?

The character's responses to the abuse that they're suffering from. Also as always you need to consider why you're actually including such a thing in your work and how it alters the story. Depending on how much of the abuse is actually explained and what kind of abuse you could risk jumping the rating up to mature.

Also the rating could rise depending on the way that they cope with the abuse. After all in reality there are people who turn to drugs and/or alcohol to dull the pain. Others may cut themselves or put themselves purposefully in danger to get attention, as a cry for help.

You also need to remember your audience, when all is said and done do you have the character reconcile with their abuser since it's the "right" thing to do or more likely do they cut them out of their life completely? Also does the character grow up to be an abuser themselves or(more likely) do they grow up into a person who would try their hardest to protect other's from winding up into such a situation.

Again, as with the chapter on Sexual Assault you need to consider the reason that you feel as though you need to add this to your story. Consider how the character's gender factors into that choice(and the type of abuse) and as always do some actual research on the subject.

What Characters/Stories Do You Have?

As with Sexual Assault I actually do have a number of characters with abuse in their background. A few of them are of course obvious such as Buziba and Kia, but others aren't as obvious. Such as Ace from Prophecy or Matthew(a background character for Invisibility). Of course there's also Tyler and Elliot from my From Madness series that's currently been worked on.

Each of these character's have their own reactions and masks that they kind of wear to deal with the rest of the world. Such as Tyler's goofy don't let anything drag you down kind of persona and Eliot's trust issues and anxieties. Kia's reaction to take it out on those who abused her, and Buziba just retreats and runs away trying to cut himself off from the people who harmed him.

Ace just kind of strives to protect his sister and family while suffering from a whole bunch of other issues, mostly when it comes to his self-esteem and confidence in his own abilities. Also Orphanage of Fear, which he lives in along with his younger sister and honorary brother Camille.

Also in that series/universe there's Tamotsu, Yoru, Max, Chiyo and a whole load of others in the background. I mean seriously, in the background of this one universe I have so much going on it's a bit hard to even determine where I should really start when it comes to writing the stories themselves.

Again most of this is targeted towards a Young Adult kind of audience so the themes all fit and again most of it is actually writing practice and seeing exactly how much I can actually do. Also, for a story where all of my characters come from an abusive background you can probably check out The Elementals and related stories...

Post Apocalyptic stories tend to lead to such backgrounds due to the issues that the survivors have to deal with.

Conclusion? 

Again in Conclusion this is basically how we're dealing with the issue. Perhaps it's a bit overdone, perhaps a bit silly or we manage to trivialize the issue or turn it into something of a joke with the way the character's react to and deal with it. Again don't go assuming that we're just using it as an excuse to give our characters issues, or make the story seem darker.

Because that's not right...


End file.
